Donald Trump is more of a used car salesman than a presidential candidate

Donald Trump is an illusion: an overly ambitious and privileged child of affluence that relies on a fabricated name to prop up a facade of wealth which depreciates with every failed business venture and petty lawsuit he engages in.

Trump’s campaign has very few concrete positions. He has run his presidential bid much like he runs his businesses: branding. He promises people “the best”, he assures the public that he will get “the best people” to run his administration, he declares that he will “Make America Great Again”. Personally, I think his appeals to the electorate sound more like a sleazy used car salesman than a presidential candidate, but millions of people are buying what he’s selling and adore him.

The Donald’s main claim is that he is a successful and prudent businessman who will bring these skills to the oval office. Simple research however would indicate otherwise. His career in real estate began when he moved to Manhattan in 1971. Two years later the Department of Justice pursued legal action against the Donald and The Trump Organization for disgraceful and racists practices that were in violation of the Fair Housing Act. Trump’s first large scale foray into real estate was the construction of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in 1978, however he did so with ample help from his father’s fortune.

Trump acquired the Plaza hotel in 1988 but was $550 million dollars in debt by 1992 and had to file Chapter 11 on the project (bankruptcy) and sell more than half of his shares. Construction of the Trump Tower was completed in 1983, however he was brought to court again by the government for employing 200 undocumented Polish immigrants under terrible working conditions. In addition to the Trump Plaza Hotel, The Trump Organization has filed Chapter 11 three other times after making poor business decisions including the Trump Taj Mahal Casino in Atlantic City, Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts Inc. and Trump Entertainment Resorts.

During the third night of the RNC, Eric Trump proudly said in his speech: “My father cannot be bought or sold”, which is ironic because it would appear Trump’s most successful tactic has been to sell the name “Trump”. Due to his poor personal record in real estate, he licenses his name to be used on a variety of real estate projects that he has little to no involvement with. It’s more than just real estate though, Trump slaps his name onto every company and product he touches. From Trump Steaks to the infamous Trump University, the man has made his money mostly by licensing his name and selling the image of wealth.

One legitimate fact about Trump is that he did receive more primary votes than any Republican candidate in history, however he also holds the record for the most primary votes against him as well. Perhaps this is why psychologists find him so interesting. The Pew Research Center finds his meteoric rise fascinating as well and has analyzed his surge in popularity. So how does he do it?

I spoke to many Trump supporters and saw that many of these people have good intentions but are vulnerable to being controlled by personal fears and insecurities. He capitalizes on powerful techniques of persuasion through the use of vague and basic language. As an extremely skilled manipulator, Trump has learned how to deliver very vague and unspecific speeches that speak to the most basic parts of the human character. As a salesman he has learned how to answer/evade questions in an equally subtle and calculated way.

The second day of the RNC concluded Tuesday night around 11pm. A banner proclaiming “Make America Great Again” filled the screen as the O’Jay’s blasted out of my speakers proclaiming, “People round the world, join hands. Start a love train, a love train” and a sea of white conservatives awkwardly danced and shouted with joy.

It is official: Donald Trump is the presidential nominee for the Republic Party in 2016. His candidacy perfectly encapsulates everything The Donald truly is. He is a brand; a name and a personality that only represent the value his supporters give him. Donald Trump has transmuted his way through every political party. He is a textbook narcissist that has done an amazing job selling a political platform that is as hollow and dubious as his entire career as a businessman. His campaign is not about politics, it’s about selling the idea of wealth to the frustrated and impoverished masses.